Central

IOU? A woman was reportedly assaulted in a dispute about money. Officers responded to a report of a trespasser in a hotel room on the 1300 block of California Street at 11:41 p.m. Dec. 17. Upon their arrival, they learned that a woman had been feloniously assaulted after a dispute between her and a friend of her recently deceased husband. The suspect claimed that the victim and her deceased husband owed him money. When the victim refused to give him money, the suspect began to choke her. The woman was able to escape the room, meet with officers and lead them to her room. The suspect was taken into custody.

Cooling-off period: An officer responded to the scene of an altercation at Powell and Union streets between two former business partners at 3:41 p.m. Dec. 18. One officer learned that one of the men had struck the other with a pair of nunchakus, which are illegal. The ongoing dispute reached a temporary resolution with the suspect being arrested for battery and possession of an illegal weapon.

Northern

Pointing the way: Plainclothes officers responded to the 2000 block of Lombard Street regarding a theft of a purse at 1 p.m. Dec. 5. The victim told the officers she was parked with her passenger-side window open when the suspect walked up to the car and asked her for directions. As the victim pointed in the direction he was asking about, the suspect reached into the open window, grabbed the purse and took off. A good Samaritan saw what happened and chased the suspect. As he was running, the suspect dropped the purse. The witness picked up the purse and continued to run after the suspect. The witness also picked up the wallet the suspect had now thrown to the ground. The witness lost sight of the suspect but was able to return the purse and the wallet to the victim. The suspect had managed to take the money that was in the wallet. The suspect is a 30- to 35-year-old male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, with brown hair. He was wearing a gray T-shirt, gray sweatshirt tied around his waist and was clean-shaven.